Project Partners
Vetiver Grass 6-part Educational Video Series
A 6-part series of short educational videos to quickly share knowledge and raise awareness on the multitude of different uses and benefits of vetiver grass.
Vetiver grass is a unique plant, and has become globally recognized as a green and cost-effective tool to assist with a range of critical soil and water related challenges facing much of the globe – where vetiver grass can grow in tropical and subtropical climates and can be found in 100+ countries across the world. Vetiver grass when applied according to the Vetiver System (VS) can assist with land stabilization, erosion control, infrastructure protection, retaining-wall alternatives, flood mitigation, soil and water conservation, groundwater recharge – and even the treatment of contaminated lands and waters. At the same time, the plant’s leaves can also be used to make a wide range of fully sustainable handicrafts, and the roots have a sweet earthy fragrance and can be used to make essential oil and perfumes. All of these things have made vetiver grass an invaluable species to assist with many of our current efforts as a global population to become more sustainable and resilient to climate change – while also presenting a host of livelihood opportunities for communities and individuals who find different ways to work with it.
Where IAMovement and its partners have spent 10+ years driving education and access to vetiver grass in the Caribbean, a 6-part video series was developed in 2023 on vetiver grass, showcasing and speaking to its many different uses – aimed at educating people and raising general awareness about this simple but marvelous plant. Because of the integrated way in which vetiver grass and the Vetiver System (VS) work alongside and are applied by people in their various lived environments, they have been recognized also as valuable tools in efforts to support Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA), especially in tropical and small-island communities facing extreme weather events.
The 6-part video series can be viewed below and on IAMovement’s Film Room page, as well as an earlier general educational video on vetiver grass which was produced by IAMovement for the IDB Lab Building on Vetiver! Project in 2018. A range of documentary short-films capturing IAMovement’s Vetiver Education & Empowerment Project (VEEP) activities across Caribbean communities can also be found in our film room.